College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley. The city is located within the most populated region of Texas, near three of the 10 largest cities in the United States - Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio. The population estimate as of 2006 is 86,000. College Station and Bryan together make up the Bryan-College Station metropolitan area, the sixteenth largest Metropolitan area in Texas with 203,371 people. College Station is home to the main campus of Texas A&M University, the flagship institution of The Texas A&M University System. The city owes both its name and existence to the university's location along a railroad. Texas A&M's triple designation as a Land-, Sea-, and Space-Grant institution reflects the broad scope of the research endeavors it brings to the city, with ongoing projects funded by agencies such as NASA, the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation and the Office of Naval Research. Due largely to the size of Texas A&M University, College Station was named by Money magazine in 2006 as the most educated city in Texas, and the 11th most educated city in the United States.